Origin:

In September 1963 Marvel editor Stan Lee introduced a new comic book called The Uncanny X-Men, which featured a group of teenage mutants under the tutelage of wheelchair bound Professor Xavier, himself a mutant possessing telepathic powers.

The Uncanny X-Men was never a big seller, but in 1975 Marvel started a new line called The X-Men drawn by Englishman John Byrne and scripted by Chris Claremont. Imbuing a sense of internationalism into the team there was a German (NightCrawler), a Russian (Colossus), an African princess (Storm), a Japanese (Sunfire), a native American (Thunderbird) , and everybodies immediate favourite the bad tempered Canadian - Wolverine.

As with many other Marvel superheroes, the emphasis was on feeling/being different from those around them. Mutants possessing strange powers being persued by normal humanity who looked on them as freaks. This was a variation of the theme already employed succesfully with Spider-Man where the "different-ness" simply stemmed from being an adolescent in an adults world.

Synopsis:

One of the most popular superhero teams in comic book history finally comes to the screen in this big-budget adaptation of the long-running Marvel Comics series. Psychic Professor Xavier (Patrick Stewart) leads a school of skilled mutants called X-Men, a peacekeeping force to safeguard the world against a race of genetically mutated humans known as Homo Sapiens Superior. However, Magneto (Ian McKellen), a mutant with a powerful magnetic charge, has also begun to organize a team to strike first against what he believes to be a threat from humanity. When he kidnaps Rogue (Anna Paquin) from the X-Men's compound, Xavier and his forces must rescue her, even as they continue to vie with Magneto for the fearsomely strong mutant battler Wolverine (Hugh Jackman). Both Xavier and Magneto also have to contend with Senator Kelly (Bruce Davison), a heartless political leader who wants a final solution against mutants on both sides. Fighting for the forces of virtue with the X-Men are Famke Janssen as Jean Grey, Halle Berry as Storm, and James Marsden as Cyclops; Rebecca Romjin-Stamos as Mystique, Ray Park as the Toad, and Tyler Mane as Sabretooth are the minions of Magneto.

© Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Past Appearances:

X-Men 2 (2004)

X-Men 3 (2006) Directed by: Brett Ratner. Starring: Halle Berry, Ian McKellen, Patrick Stewart, Hugh Jackman